With the advent of the computer age, electronic systems have become a staple of modern life, and some may even deem them a necessity. Part and parcel with this spread of technology is an ever greater drive for more functionality from these electronic systems. A microcosm of this quest for increased functionality is the size and capacity of various semiconductor devices. From the 8 bit microprocessor of the original Apple I, through the 16 bit processors of the original IBM PC AT, to the current day, the processing power of semiconductors has grown while the size of these semiconductors has consistently been reduced.
As semiconductors have evolved into these complex systems, almost universally the connectivity and power requirements for these semiconductors have been increasing. Generally speaking, the higher the clock frequency utilized with a semiconductor, the greater that semiconductor's power consumption (all other aspects being equal). Thus, modern electronics and computing components may run at relatively higher temperatures than previous generations. Higher temperatures are undesirable due to the decrease in performance of CPUs and other microprocessors (throttling), reliability of memory devices or operating life of electronic components. As a result, cooling systems have been developed to control the operating temperatures of various components.
The difficulty in cooling these high-speed electronic components is exacerbated in the mobile computing environment, where packaging limitations (e.g., size and weight), electronic components and battery life, and the resulting space and power requirements may raise further impediments to adequate cooling of electronic components. These problems may manifest themselves even more dramatically in the context of implementing mission critical mobile computing platforms, such as electronic components designed to be utilized by members of the armed services in combat situations, in extreme weather conditions (e.g., sandy, rainy, cold, hot, etc.), or other arenas or situations where the proper operation of these electronic components is of the utmost importance. As these mission critical mobile devices may have a number of operational constrains imposed on them, including shock resistance, imperviousness to liquids, operating temperature, radiation emissions, etc., cooling electronic components of such mission critical mobile devices may be even more difficult, as necessities imposed by these other constraints (for example, sealed portions of chassis, chassis material, etc.) may further limit the cooling systems which may be utilized.
As it is still desired to use high-speed electronic components in these various types of mobile computing devices (especially in the context of mission critical devices where processing power may provide a vital advantage), what is required are sophisticated and effective cooling systems to remove heat from electronic components in mobile computing devices.